This copy is for your personal non-commercial use only. To order presentation-ready copies of Toronto Star content for distribution to colleagues, clients or customers, or inquire about permissions/licensing, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com

Blue Jays lose 19-inning marathon, with some help from home-plate umpire

The Jays' Russell Martin has a few choice words for home plate umpire Vic Carapazza after being tossed for arguing a called third strike against Cleveland on Friday. (Steve Russell / Toronto Star) | Order this photo

You couldn’t ask the Blue Jays to give anything more than they did in a record-tying 2-1 loss to Cleveland in 19 innings on Canada Day.

And once the game finally ended, they didn’t have more to give anyway.

The game lasted six hours and 13 minutes and tied a record for the longest game by innings in Jays history; Toronto was simply drained, especially its bullpen.

The 19 innings tied the franchise mark, set Aug. 10, 2014 in a 6-5 win over Detroit; but that Detroit game still ranks as the longest by time at six hours and 37 minutes.

All seven of the team’s relievers, plus position player Ryan Goins, combined for 11.1 innings of scoreless relief against an Indians team that ultimately broke its own franchise record with its 14th consecutive win.

Article Continued Below

Goins even coaxed an inning-ending double play ball in the 18th before giving way to fellow infielder Darwin Barney, who had a strikeout but also had Indians designated hitter Carlos Santana stroke the game-winning homer in the top of the 19th.

“That was the first time I’ve pitched since high school,” a humble Barney said afterward.

“All I was trying to do is not hurt anyone, you don’t want to see anyone get hurt in a situation like that.”

Barney became the 10th position player to pitch an inning or more in Jays history.

Goins, sent to the bullpen in the 13th when it became apparent the Jays relief corps would be depleted, seemed almost as amazed as what was left of a Canada Day crowd of 45,825 when he threw what looked like a 60-m.p.h. changeup to Cleveland catcher Chris Gimenez for the double play ball that ended the 17th.

The Indians deserved credit for putting themselves in position for the win, which came on the strength of some superb relief work as well, including five shutout innings from Trevor Bauer, who was to be Saturday’s starter but was pressed into service to shore up the Cleveland bullpen.

Toronto was thinking along the same lines — possibly summoning starters J.A. Happ, or Saturday’s starter Marco Estrada — but decided against it. In Estrada’s case, the decision reflected the all-star level starter’s recent minor bout with back pain, something that bothered him in spring training and forced him to push back his first start of the season.

As it is, both teams will likely make roster moves and call-ups to fill out pitching assignments for the rest of this series and beyond to the all-star break in 10 days time.

The Jays got a scare in the 16th when reliever Bo Schultz, stretched to three innings, favoured his hip after a pitch, but he remained in the game.

“A number of guys talked about cramping up,” said Jays bench coach DeMarlo Hale. “It got to the point where we were running out of options. We talked to Bo and he said he was okay, he’ll need a couple of days off now, but he was okay.”

Hale was in charge of the team after the first inning following an incident where the Jays lost manager John Gibbons and Edwin Encarnacion for arguing a called third strike with home plate umpire Vic Carapazza.

Carapazza, who was booed the entire game by Jays fans, also ejected catcher Russell Martin in the 13th inning for arguing a called third strike.

“I don’t think he was good,” Martin said of Carapazza.

“I told him the first curveball (of his at bat in the 13th inning), I had that pitch being away. And then he said, ‘I don’t want to hear it.’ Then I was like, ‘It’s still away.’ As I’m walking away, he threw me out of the game. I wasn’t being aggressive, didn’t tell him that he sucked personally, I didn’t tell him that he was bad. I didn’t do anything like that. All the things that everybody in the ballpark were thinking, I didn’t say that. I felt like he really didn’t have to throw me out in that situation, but I don’t know, maybe just the way the game was going on, and I guess he was just tired of being talked at or whatnot. And I just felt like there were some pitches that were called balls that were strikes and the other way around, so it was just a frustrating day overall.”

Carapazza, ripped on social media and in the post-game Jays broadcast, was also at the centre of a similar argument last October during a Jays playoff game in Toronto.

Carapazza was behind the plate for that game, a Marcus Stroman start. Stroman started Friday’s game, and engaged in a verbal exchange with Carapazza after exiting a solid five-hitter with two outs in the seventh inning.

“No comment,” was Stroman’s reply after the game when asked about Carapazza’s strike zone.

According to stats compiled by Baseball Savant, Carapazza called strikes on 15 per cent of balls outside the strike zone as a season average.

“With Edwin (Encarnacion in the first inning), it didn’t get personal either,” Martin said.

“It’s tough for a player saying your piece, then getting thrown out for being right. I think umpires need to take a deep breathe sometimes … hopefully he (Carapazza) gets talked to by veteran umpires about how it’s done.”

More from the Toronto Star & Partners

LOADING

Copyright owned or licensed by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or distribution of this content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Toronto Star Newspapers Limited and/or its licensors. To order copies of Toronto Star articles, please go to: www.TorontoStarReprints.com